World

ByCompiled from wire service reports by Robert Kilborn and Kristen Broman-WorthingtonSeptember 4, 2002

In an apparent break with other world leaders, British Prime Minister Blair said Iraq's threat to the rest of the world is "real" and that the US shouldn't have to deal with it alone. He said Britain would publish "within the next few weeks" evidence of Iraqi development of weapons of mass destruction. He spoke as the Baghdad government offered to work with the UN on resuming weapons inspections  but only in the broader context of ending economic sanctions. (Related story, page 1; editorial, page 8.)

Relatives of Palestinian terrorists may be deported from the West Bank to the Gaza Strip, Israel's Supreme Court ruled. But the justices said expulsions could take place only if the government proves the relatives pose a security threat. They didn't say how that should be calculated. Two expulsions are expected to be carried out today. Meanwhile, some radical Palestinians called for the firing of a senior aide to Yasser Arafat for asking them to end attacks against Israelis.

At least 15 people believed to be North Korean asylum-seekers huddled on the outdoor stairway of a diplomatic compound in Beijing after climbing over a wall (above) and dodging security guards. Their fate was not immediately clear. The complex houses a German government-run school and apartments for embassy staffers. On Sunday, guards arrested eight of 12 North Koreans trying to scale a wall into Ecuador's embassy. Another 20 asylum-seekers await word in South Korea's embassy on whether China will allow them to leave for Seoul.

An appeal to outlaw the Basque separatist political party Batasuna was presented to Spain's Supreme Court by the government. Last week, Batasuna was suspended for three years by a criminal court, and the government said it will ask neighboring France and other nations to close the party's offices there. Batasuna supporters responded with protests across northern Spain, and over the weekend police defused a terrorist bomb before it could explode.

Although it has only enough corn to last until December, Zambia will not expose 2.4 million people to genetically modified imports because they are "poison," President Levy Mwanawasa said. He admitted to journalists seeking clarification of a policy announced last month that Zambia has "severe" food shortages. But he said that is "no justification to give them food that is intrinsically dangerous" to their health. Most of the food provided to Zambia by UN agencies comes from the US.